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TRASHFORMERS

Nov 012012
 
Mikko and the Egg

Mikko and the Egg

Trashformers! …. More than meets the eye
Trashformers! …. Fixers in disguise
Trashformers wage the battle to destroy the evil forces of …. consumerism!

Yes, friends, that’s the best I could do. One doesn’t want to mess too much with genius television cartoon lyrics! A couple of months ago, back when it was warm, I went to a tiny spot in the former GDR, now simply called The Eastern Part of Germany, in a cool little place called Lausitzer Zeitreisen, and along with about 19 other awesome people made …. things …. out …. of …. TRASH! It was a meeting organized by Berlin’s fabulous TRIAL AND ERROR. THANKS!

Many others have posted links and photos about the gathering, so first I share:
ARTICLE: http://reciclarecreativa.ro/en/blog/2012/09/08/rezultatele-workshopului-de-9-zile-in-berlin/ (Romanian /English)
ARTICLE: http://humoenlaciudad.blogspot.com.es/p/trashformers.html (Spanish)
ARTICLE: http://www.trial-error.org/post/32665042881/trashformers-from-waste-to-design-what-happens (English)
PHOTOS: https://secure.flickr.com/photos/rosada/sets/72157631627589098/

It was called TRASHFORMERS. I didn’t bring a camera (broken!) and so a very grateful thanks to TauMH of Trial & Error for taking and sharing these pictures.

If you look at those pictures, you’ll see all the wonderful things we made: rabbit cages, silk screens, puppet theaters, puppets, paper, books, chairs, loungers, rocket stoves, sauna/sweat lodge, art, plus we learned a lot about group decision making and collaboration.

I got very  inspired with all the amazing metal objects lying around the place and made something I haven’t made for a very long time –  A DRUM KIT OUT OF JUNK! I built it right into the ground, as an addition to the kids playground that was already on the spot. The old washing drum had such a sweet sound! Ahh…. Here’s some pics (all taken by Tau).

Radu and I having a good scream!
Screaming Drummers

Sasha and Mark jamming!
Sasha and Mark jamming

Dingers from old washing machines!
Dingers from old washing machines

Detail of the lashing!
Lashing and wooden supports

My favorite part: a high hat made out of birch blocks!
Birch Block High Hat

Drumsticks out of cotton batting and sticks!
Cotton batting and sticks for Drumsticks

Making the sticks!
Making Drumsticks

Jodie the Semi-Conductor!
Jodie the Semi-Conductor

DIY Table

May 202012
 
DIY Table

DIY Table

Here is a table I made from a big board I found in the dumpster. The Polish equivalent of Home Depot is called Castorama, which is actually a French company. I don’t understand why, but wood is very expensive in this store and most of the wood is really shitty–actually it’s not wood at all but rather plastic-covered particleboard, a sort of IKEA-type substance that offends me on both the aesthetic and ecological plains. One must go to a lumber yard to find real wood. It’s fun to go there and it’s cheap and that’s all great. What is not great is that the lumber yards are way out of town, requiring a car to get there, which I have not. However, I found this sort of “garden wood” at the good ‘ole Castorama. It’s about four times cheaper than untreated pine and is actually cut to standard and usable sizes.  A great guy named DAREK helped me saw the wood (and he also dug two big garden bed holes very fast and trimmed a giant apple tree). Thanks Darek!

Cannibal Crafting in Finland

Apr 202012
 

I’ve already been back for awhile, but wanted to share these photos of the CRAFT OF THE CANNIBAL exhibit and workshop at Hirvitalo in the awesome neighborhood of Pipsala in Tampere, Finland. I don’t have any photos of the opening, but here is a little action from the day after:

People and their hooks

People and their hooks

I put together a giant ball of used yarn gathered from second hand shops here in Warsaw. It has about 3000m in it.

Inside the big ball of yarn

Inside the big ball of yarn

Big Ball of Yarn

Big Ball of Yarn

It hung from the ceiling and people could either add some stitches, or use it to learn how to crochet, which in fact turned out to be unnecessary since many Finns already know how to crochet. The idea was to collectively knit a blanket. Hirvitalo told me they would put the ball in the public library, since in two weeks only about 18 inches (50cm?) was finished. It takes a long time to crochet something! We dyed yarn with plants: apple bark, tumeric, madder, and compost (mostly coffee grounds).

Madder Dye

Madder Dye

DIY Crochet Hooks

DIY Crochet Hooks

Also there was some carving of crochet hooks. Suva made these gorgeous hooks! A master he is.

The Sprout Room

The Sprout Room

Upstairs was a room and microclimate to grow sprouts. The Sprout Room.

Cannibal Monster - Father

Cannibal Monster - Father

There was also an exhibition of my Cannibal Monsters, which caused quite a controversy. Who would have thought? Fortunately, I had my “artist statement” at hand.

Snow in Finland on April 2

Snow in Finland on April 2

The craziest thing of all is that it snowed 40 cm on April 2. The best thing of all is that I met some really fine people.